Author Archives: energyskeptic

Tree planting is not a simple solution but sure beats Carbon Capture!

Preface.  The article from Science below lists both negative and positive outcomes depending on where trees are planted. The unintended negative effects could be a reduced water supply, the destruction of native grasslands and spread of invasive tree species, or … Continue reading

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How safe and cheap are Gen IV Advanced Nuclear Reactors?

Preface. Peak conventional oil, which supplies over 95% of our oil, may have peaked in 2008 (IEA 2018) or 2018 (EIA 2020). We are running out of time. And is it really worth building these small modular reactors (SMR) given … Continue reading

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Australian Senate hearings on Peak Oil & Transportation 2006

Preface.  This post has a summary of two of the nine senate hearings on Peak Oil in Australia in 2006. Someday historians may want to know which politicians knew about the energy crisis and when they knew it, probably to … Continue reading

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Australian government was Peak Oil Aware in 2006

Preface. This post is excerpts from Bakhtiari’s testimony about Peak Oil before the Australian Senate Committee in 2006. I’ve excerpted what I found of interest, so if it seems disjointed, that’s my fault. And it isn’t just the Australian Senate … Continue reading

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We’ve wiped out two-thirds of wildlife in just 50 years

Last updated 2022-4-28 Preface.  Human over-consumption is driving extinction far more than climate change. Humans  began reducing biodiversity 4 million years ago, when large carnivores in Africa began disappearing (Faurby, S., et al. 2020. Brain expansion in early hominins predicts … Continue reading

Posted in Biodiversity Loss, Extinction, Food production, Scientists Warnings to Humanity | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Slavery in the Roman Empire

Preface. After fossils decline, we go back to wood as our main thermal source of energy for cooking, heating, smelting metals, ceramics, bricks, glass and other products that need the high heat of wood charcoal. Sadly, another source of energy … Continue reading

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Walter Youngquist: Geodestinies dams and hydropower

Preface. I was fortunate enough to know Walter for 15 years. He became a friend and mentor, helping me learn to become a better science writer, and sending me material I might be interested in, and delightful pictures of him … Continue reading

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Walter Youngquist: Geodestinies Coal

Preface. Before the excerpt from Geodestinies, I thought an introduction to how coal is formed would be worthwhile, especially since I still thought it was the “once-popular explanation” below (Cottier 2021 How Ancient Forests Formed Coal and Fueled Life as … Continue reading

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Book review of “Bright Green Lies”

This is a book review of “Bright Green Lies. How the Environmental Movement Lost its Way and What We can Do About It” by Derrick Jensen, Lierre Keith, and Max Wilbert. This is a timely book.  The Biden administration is … Continue reading

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Youngquist: the extraordinary geodestiny of Saudi Arabia and other gulf nations

Preface. I was fortunate enough to know Walter for 15 years. He became a friend and mentor, helping me learn to become a better science writer, and sending me material I might be interested in, and delightful pictures of him … Continue reading

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